Homesteaders and newcomers to the United States way back in the early days would grow and harvest their own food. By the time the U.S. was officially founded, cities were growing fast and more opportunity existed outside of farming resulting in less farmers. 

In 1785, the first agricultural groups in the U.S. were founded, but the industry only began to have representation in the government almost 40 years later when the U.S. House of Representatives established the Agriculture Committee. The farming industry hit its peak in 1935 when 6.8 million farms were in operation, and even though it is in decline, farming is still a major industry in the U.S.—about 2.05 million farms are currently in operation.

To determine the biggest farming county in every state, Stacker compiled data from the United States Department of Agriculture's Census of Agriculture, released every five years. The information is from 2012, the most recent data available, and includes agricultural sales from each county and what percentage those sales are of the total agricultural market in the state.

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County: DeKalb
Agricultural sales: $461,704,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 8%
Top crops: Forage-land used for all hay and haylage, grass silage, and greenchop; corn for grain; soybeans for beans; wheat for grain, all; winter wheat for grain
Top livestock: Broilers and other meat-type chickens; layers; pullets for laying flock replacement; roosters; hogs and pigs

County: Anchorage Municipality
Agricultural sales: $30,019,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 51%
Top crops: Forage-land used for all hay and haylage, grass silage, and greenchop; vegetables harvested, all; potatoes; lettuce, all; sod harvested
Top livestock: Layers; cattles and calves; hogs and pigs; horse and ponies; colonies of bees

County: Maricopa
Agricultural sales: $1,003,475,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 27%
Top crops: Forage-land used for all hay and haylage, grass silage, and greenchop; cotton, all; upland cotton; wheat for grain, all; durum wheat for grain
Top livestock: Layers; pullets for laying flock replacement; cattle and calves; colonies of bees; horses and ponies

County: Benton
Agricultural sales: $529,128,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 5%
Top crops: Forage-land used for all hay and haylage, grass silage, and greenchop; field and grass seed crops, all; corn for silage; wheat for grain, all; winter wheat for grain
Top livestock: Broilers and other meat-type chickens; layers; turkeys; pullets for laying flock replacement; cattle and calves

County: Fresno
Agricultural sales: $4,973,041,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 12%
Top crops: Grapes; vegetables harvested, all; almonds; cotton, all; tomatoes in the open
Top livestock: Broilers and other meat-type chickens; turkeys; cattle and calves; sheep and lambs; colonies of bees

County: Weld
Agricultural sales: $1,860,718,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 24%
Top crops: Wheat for grain, all; winter wheat for grain; forage-land used for all hay and haylage, grass silage, and greenchop; corn for grain; corn for silage
Top livestock: Layers; cattle and calves; pullets for laying flock replacement; sheep and lambs; horses and ponies

County: New London
Agricultural sales: $118,331,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 22%
Top crops: Forage-land used for all hay and haylage, grass silage, and greenchop; corn for silage; corn for grain; nursery stock crops; cut Christmas trees
Top livestock: Layers; pullets for laying flock replacement; broilers and other meat-type chickens; cattle and calves; roosters

County: Sussex
Agricultural sales: $921,129,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 72%
Top crops: Corn for grain; soybeans for beans; wheat for grain, all; winter wheat for grain; vegetables harvested, all
Top livestock: Broilers and other meat-type chickens; layers; cattle and calves; roosters; hogs and pigs

County: Palm Beach
Agricultural sales: $999,038,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 13%
Top crops: Sugarcane for sugar; vegetables harvested, all; sweet corn; sod harvested; sugarcane for seed
Top livestock: Colonies of bees; cattle and calves; horses and ponies; layers; goats, all

County: Franklin
Agricultural sales: $367,054,000
Percent of state's total agricultural sales: 4%
Top crops: Forage-land used for all hay and haylage, grass silage, and greenchop; wheat for grain, all; winter wheat for grain; soybeans for beans; corn for grain
Top livestock: Broilers and other meat-type chickens; layers; roosters; pullets for laying flock replacement; cattle and calves